Associate or Full Professor in Interior Design

Department: School of Interiors, College of Design, University of Kentucky

Location: Lexington, KY

Position Type: Full-Time, Tenure Track, 12-month faculty appointment at the rank of Associate or Full Professor with administrative responsibilities

Start Date: July 1, 2027

About the Role

The College of Design at the University of Kentucky invites applications and nominations for the position of Director of the School of Interiors. The Director will lead the next phase of the school’s development, working closely with faculty to articulate and advance a clear and compelling vision for the future of interior design education. This vision will build on the school’s strengths in material exploration, interdisciplinary design, and human-centered inquiry while expanding its research impact, global reach, and national visibility.

The Director is a full-time faculty position with 45% administrative responsibilities and 55% allocated to teaching and research. Reporting to the Dean of the College of Design, the Director provides overall academic, administrative, and fiscal leadership for the School. The administrative appointment is for four years, renewable for an additional four years.

The School of Interiors is entering an energetic and malleable phase, with new facilities, recent faculty hires, a completed reaccreditation in spring 2027, and an ongoing curriculum transformation. This role offers significant opportunity to shape the school’s trajectory.

Responsibilities

• Provide leadership in defining the program’s strategic priorities and vision, enhancing its visibility, brand, and reputation.
• Advance and strengthen curricular offerings, fostering excellence in teaching, research, and engagement.
• Strategically manage enrollment and oversee the hiring of full-time and part-time faculty.
• Support faculty career advancement, innovation, and multidisciplinary activities.
• Collaborate with College leadership to effectively manage program resources and promote a work and learning environment that fosters entrepreneurship, growth, collaboration, and shared governance.
• Serve as the public face of the School, positioning it within national and international design conversations.
• Expand partnerships with industry, alumni, peer institutions, and community organizations.
• Grow the School’s global footprint through study abroad and international research initiatives.
• Build upon and activate an Advisory Board and contribute to philanthropic efforts.
• Elevate the visibility of faculty research and creative work through strategic communication and outreach.
• Champion a rigorous, engaging, and supportive student experience, encouraging intellectual risk-taking and critical engagement.
• Strengthen connections to professional practice, graduate education, and interdisciplinary opportunities.
• Build alignment across faculty while supporting individual trajectories, overseeing review, promotion, and mentoring processes.
• Support and elevate faculty research, creative activity, and external recognition.
• Lead the intellectual and pedagogical direction of the school, advancing a culture of critical inquiry, experimentation, and design rigor.
• Guide curriculum development, assessment, and accreditation, strengthening the integration of research across studios, seminars, and graduate work.
• Oversee budgets, staffing, and day-to-day operations, including course schedules and faculty teaching assignments.
• Align resources with strategic priorities and collaborate with College leadership on hiring, planning, and resource allocation.

Requirements

• Terminal degree in Interior Design or a closely related field.
• Record of excellence in teaching, research, or creative practice sufficient for appointment at the rank of Associate Professor or Professor.
• Demonstrated academic leadership experience.
• Strong communication, organizational, and interpersonal skills.
• Commitment to collaboration, shared governance, and student success.

Preferred Qualifications

• National or international recognition in design research or practice.
• Experience leading program development or curricular transformation.
• Record of externally funded research or sustained professional engagement.
• Experience building strategic partnerships across academic, industry, or community contexts.
• Ability to elevate program visibility and reputation.

About the School of Interiors

The School of Interiors is a nationally respected program known for its strong and multidisciplinary faculty-led research program, collaborative culture, and commitment to design as a human-centered and materially grounded practice. The school emphasizes areas of inquiry such as material experimentation, soft making, and interdisciplinary methodologies, supported by fabrication facilities and an expanding research environment.

Faculty are engaged in creative practice, scholarship, and community-based work that contributes to both local impact and broader disciplinary conversations. The program is distinguished by its graduate offerings, positioning it among a limited number of interior design programs with advanced research pathways. This creates opportunities to further define areas of distinction and deepen research contributions.

The school is actively evolving, expanding its global footprint through study abroad and international research, strengthening connections to industry and professional practice, and building new partnerships that extend its reach. A key priority for the Director will be to expand and engage an Advisory Board and support philanthropic development.

About the College of Design

The College of Design is a dynamic, transdisciplinary environment that supports innovation across architecture, interiors, historic preservation, and product design. Housed in the newly renovated Gray Design Building, the College fosters collaboration, experimentation, and outward-facing work. The 100,000-square-foot facility includes open studio space, state-of-the-art fabrication labs, classrooms, offices, and event spaces, encouraging interaction and collaboration across disciplines.

The College is actively engaged in shaping a forward-looking vision for design education and research, connecting design to pressing environmental, social, and cultural issues. The Director of the School of Interiors will play a central role in this visioning process. The College values design as a human-centered, inherently optimistic activity, balancing theoretical foundations, conceptual design thinking, technical understanding, and the act of making.

Areas of research specialization include history, theory, and criticism; digital fabrication and simulation; materials innovation; community resiliency; sustainability and preservation; and design for health and well-being.